And force of opposition; foil the shafts
Of envy, meet the armed hosts of care,
And find stern grief of half her power disarm'd
Then if these souls unite in virtue's cause,
Their mystic union never shall dissolve,
Or in this life, or in the life to come.
EXCLAMATION DURING A STORM OF THUNDER AND LIGHTNING AT MIDNIGHT.
OH, praise Him while the thunders roll,
And while the lightnings dart,
And praise Him in that grateful strain,
The incense of the heart.
DEDICATION FOR A BOOK OF POETI
CAL EXTRACTS, TO A FRIEND.
TO aid the garland yet untwin'd,
And gently swell this budding wreath,
A wild and mountain flow'r I bind,
And o'er its leaves the lyre shall breathe,
And as you seek for varying sweets,
The future chaplet to compose,
Tread lightly o'er those lone retreats,
Where genius hides, and beauty glows.
Ask from the opening rose its bloom,
Ask of its buds their tissued fold,
Seek the meek violet's perfume,
And bow to cull the snow drop cold,
Choose freely from the gay parterre,
Or groves where oaks their shadows cast,
And climb the cliff where high in air,
The evergreen endures the blast.
From cold recess where forests wave,
Pluck the wild laurel bold and free,
And gather from the Christian's grave
The cypress and the rosemary.
And blend with these the varying stalks,
That fancy's hand in sport may strew,
Or wisdom scatter in her walks,
Or pity bring all damp with dew.
And if you rove in lonely hour,
Where rudely rocks on rocks are pill'd, Perhaps some unexpected flow'r
May pour its sweetness on the wild.
But all in vain this anxious round,
In vain the sweets by genius given,
Unless with these that flow'r is found,
Whose rich perfume ascends to Heav'n.
HOW from the changeful tablet of our days, Fleets the light trace of joy. First through the clouds
Serene it breaks, and on the lucid ray
The pleas'd eye fixes. Hap'ly too the heart Hangs there too fondly; and perchance the soul,
Cheer'd by an April smile, forgets to seek
For clearer sunshine, and a sky more pure.
Then o'er the lustre of that silver beam,
A dark shade passes, such as dims the pride
Of all below; it sickens, it expires.
Seek not with eye intense to pierce that cloud,
Or tear that veil away: It must not be !
Nor raise the murmuring of the lip perverse,
Nor arm the heart with impious pride; for oft,
The heart unhumbled, rising in its wrath,
Provokes more vengeance from the mighty hand
That in the cloud, and in the sunshine works,
Moves on the waters to abase the proud,
And raise the humble. Will the hand that guides
The fall of the pierc'd sparrow, and unmark'd
Suffers no hair to scatter from the head
Of man his fav'rite, let the sigh of grief
And tear, and prayer, of patient suffering, rise
Unnoticed, unregarded? Oh ! what tongue
Shall dare to say our God is merciless.
What mortal hand shall lift itself to blot
The purpose of his wisdom. Let the eye,
That in his smile or in his frown perceives
The teachings of a father, aid the heart
That meekly says my God! thy will be done.
THOU, whose kind hand, and ever watchful care, Presents another year, and wakes my prayer, Guide thou my steps, direct me in my course, Crush vain resolves, and errors strengthen'd
Impart the meek desire, the hope sublime,
The thought that soars above the scenes of time,
The hand that toils untir'd for other's good,
And sets the seal to duty understood,
The humble heart, the sympathy sincere,
The smile for joy, for misery, the tear,
Balm for the wounded, for the drooping-aid,
A tranquil trust when ills of life invade,
The conscience clear, that leads to sweet repose,
And the warm thrill that pure devotion knows.
Let gratitude to those who kindly strew
My path with flow'rs, be uniform and new ;
And still my spirit reach each fair degree
Of gratitude to those, and love to thee.
What shall I ask, or what refrain to say,
Where shall I point, or how conclude my lay ? So much my weakness needs; so much thy voice Assures that weakness, and confirms my choice.
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